Sarah Serena
I am an AACPS: Teacher, Waugh Chapel Elementary | 2019 Teacher of the Year Semi-Finalist
A successful classroom community exists when a teacher takes time to build authentic relationships. In turn, students feel safe and are comfortable taking risks. Their love of learning is ignited and their interests and curiosity drive instruction daily.
I pride myself on building relationships with my kids through morning meetings, lunch bunches, sporting events, birthday parties, and lots of laughter. Last summer, my room mom emailed me saying how much her daughter missed me and asked if I would be
interested in going bowling with her family. The plan grew and my whole class met me at the bowling alley! I only have 180 days with these kids, and I want to make the most of it!
I watch students overcome challenges and take risks because they trust our classroom community. I lead by example. Our classroom is student-led, from the morning meeting managers, to the class vet, to the inquiry questions that drive instruction.
My approach to building a love of learning is to let students’ inquiry drive instruction. I incorporate their interests into my lessons, using multiple methods of teaching in order to reach all students. After reading a book about oil spills, students wanted to take action to help. They decided they would raise money for the National Wildlife Federation. They created an action plan including letters to Oil Drilling companies, as well as research and sketches of inventions they wanted to create in order to efficiently clean up oil spills. They then eagerly planned to conduct a schoolwide fundraiser for their cause.
This nomination is an incredible honor that I feel that has come after hard work and intentional dedication to children. We are a successful classroom community and on a daily basis, I learn as much from our children as they do from me. The relationships we have are strong and cultivated daily, which leads to academic success and greatness. As a class, we collect beautiful moments together!
